Chapter Twenty Five: A Discovery

"You are clear to proceed."

Jimmy's words, coming through his earpiece loud and clear, provided the confirmation that Victor had been waiting for: the mission was on. For some minutes he had crouched waiting in the shadow of a building, surveying his surroundings for any signs of LuthorCorp security. There had been none, Jimmy's transmission providing the final confirmation he required before beginning his part of the operation. His role was simple; to disable the LuthorCorp security system and provide the diversion required to allow Chloe and AC to penetrate the secret levels of the building and find the mysterious Patient 29. As he got to his feet he could not help but smile at the thought of what he and the guys were about to inflict on Lex – a second humiliation in under a week, right at the very heart of his operation, and this time a humiliation that would finally expose the truth about his criminal activities.

"This one's for you, Oliver," he thought to himself, checking the empty street one more time for any potential sources of danger. Satisfied that he was quite alone, he ran silently across the road to the fence that protected the rear of the LuthorCorp building. He had already identified his first objective, a small box screwed to one of the concrete fence posts. Without hesitation, he ripped the cover from the box, to reveal a spaghetti of different coloured wires. As he hacked into the perimeter security system, his cybernetic eye glowing as the cameras and alarms that monitored the fence were one by one disabled, his thoughts turned briefly to when he had performed exactly the same operation at the Ridge Facility some months before. Oliver had been by his side then, every inch the leader as they had saved Bart and taken out one of Lex's most important 33.1 operations. Now he was alone, but somehow it didn't feel like that; Victor felt as if Oliver was still with him in spirit, standing by his side and guiding him as again the League that the Green Arrow had created once more went into action.

The perimeter security system disarmed, Victor took hold of the wire fence and peeled it back as easily as if he were turning the page of a book. A quick survey of the area beyond the wire confirming that he was still unobserved, he slipped through the gap he had created and jogged lightly across to the small, square building which stood in the shadow of its larger neighbour, the corporate headquarters of LuthorCorp. The building had no windows, only a thick steel door. To the casual observer it would have appeared to be nothing more than some form of storage building, or maybe a generator room; only those with a knowledge of LuthorCorp security understood that in fact it housed the heart of the main building's security system. Victor had that knowledge, and, just as a few seconds before at the fence, he made short work of the door which was meant to withstand all comers.

On entering the building it did not take him long to identify the control panel he was looking for. His objective now was twofold; first, to disable the inner security systems that protected the core of the LuthorCorp building from attack, and second, to simulate a security breach on the fifteenth floor of the building. He'd planned everything down to the last detail, and as he once more began the process of hacking into the system he was confident that the diversion he had prepared would be sufficient to draw a majority of Lex's night security team well away from the secret area that AC and Chloe stood ready to penetrate. A few guards would remain, but they would be nothing that AC couldn't take care of; by the time Lex's men realised that they had been tricked, Chloe and AC would be well clear, hopefully with Patient 29 alive and well and ready to tell all to the authorities.

As his system connected with the LuthorCorp network he felt the familiar surge of power in his left arm as the process of data exchange began. The virus that he had prepared started to download onto Lex's servers, ready to wreak havoc on the systems that protected the Luthor empire. It was a process he had undertaken many times before, and for a few seconds all appeared normal. Then, without warning, a sudden surge of energy shot down the wire that connected Victor to the network. Victor was thrown backwards with huge force, hitting a wall before falling to the ground. For a split second he lay stunned and unmoving, before his body began to spasm uncontrollably. Seized by panic, his brain tried to make sense of what had happened, but he found it difficult to focus; a sharp, stabbing pain repeatedly pulsed through his head, blinding in its intensity and adding to his sense of helplessness.

A trap!

Somewhere in his mind that terrible realisation forced itself through the pain and into his consciousness. Acting almost on instinct, he reached up to his earpiece, struggling to force the muscles in his arm to obey against the power of the convulsions that seemed to be growing in intensity with every second that passed. He could hear footsteps approaching – heavy footsteps, the footsteps of men in uniform. He knew that he had to warn the others, to tell them that they were walking into a trap....

"Sidekick, do you read me?.....Jimmy.....it's a trap! Warn the others – get them out of there!"

As Victor gasped his words of warning he became aware of three men standing over him. He looked up, to find the familiar sight of LuthorCorp uniforms, and guns trained on him. For a split second he made eye contact with one of the guards, his face fixed and apparently emotionless.

How had they known? How had they known he was coming?

There was the sound of a shot, and simultaneously Victor felt a tranquiliser dart impacting on the side of his neck. As the drug quickly spread through his body, slowly easing him towards unconsciousness, he listened for Jimmy's reply to his warning, the acknowledgement that would reassure him that the mission would be aborted, and that AC and Chloe would be safe.

There was none – only silence.

"Sidekick, do you read me?.....Jimmy.....it's a trap! Warn the others – get them out of there!"

As Victor's desperate words filled the control room at Oliver's penthouse Jimmy could only stare dumbly at the monitor in front of him. His face ashen, he watched as Akunin's team moved in to apprehend their helpless prey; even had he wanted to respond to Victor's plea he would not have been able to, his mouth bone dry from anxiety. Lex's plan was playing out just as he had expected it to, and one by one the Justice League were falling into his hands. What had he done! It all seemed too terrible for words, that these young heroes should become the captives of someone as pitiless as Lex Luthor, and that he, Jimmy Olsen, should have been so instrumental in making this horror a reality. He wished that he could wake from this nightmare, to discover that none of it was true – but Akunin's presence at his side confirmed that this was all too real. Worse still, the most terrible act of betrayal was yet to come...

The emotions of the woman who stood next to Jimmy could not have been more different. Akunin was in her element, orchestrating a plan that she had prepared down to the finest detail. Everything was going like clockwork, and she could not help but think of what lay ahead once all of the Green Arrow's freaks were in captivity; how she would use them against Oliver, force him to abase himself before her as they watched, before finally she would execute them, one by one, as he stood by, helpless and broken.

"Beta Leader to Alpha One, come in, please." The voice of the man assigned to capture Cyborg sounded in Akunin's earpiece.

"Report, Beta Leader."

"Target is in custody. I repeat, target is in custody."

"Good work, Beta Leader. Secure the target as directed. Out."

Confirmation that Cyborg had been captured caused a smile to form on Akunin's lips. She had taken particular delight in designing the trap that had taken down Victor; so used to being able to hack into any computer system at will, what a surprise he must have got to find that on this occasion it was he whose systems were to be infected with a virus, not the other way round. The net was tightening around the League, and all that remained now was to ensnare AC and Chloe. Akunin felt a tinge of regret that she would not be present to witness the climax to the operation; Lex had reserved that honour to himself, and if all went to plan the moment of capture would indeed be a moment to savour. She consoled herself with the knowledge of all the games she would be able to play with her handsome new toys, how she and Lex would break their insolent spirits with torture and degradation.

"It's time – you know what to do."

Akunin's words sent a shudder down Jimmy's spine. It really was time – time for the greatest act of betrayal, and the one that he had looked forward to with the greatest dread. His hand trembling, he reached forward to open a comlink with the two members of the League who remained free – and utterly oblivious to the terrible fate that had already befallen their friends.

"Aquaman," he began, his voice barely audible. "The security system is down, and you are cleared to proceed."

"Affirmative, Sidekick – we are going in."

AC's voice, strong and confident, sounded through the chamber, before the link went dead.

Jimmy slumped back in his chair, his heart beating fast in his chest.

The deed was done – all he could do now was to hope that Lex was as good as his word, and did not harm the woman who all this was for.

"Hey, you okay there, Watchtower?"

AC grinned reassuringly across at Chloe, who tried to reciprocate – with limited success. All she could muster was a half smile, her nerves getting the better of her as together the two of them descended in an elevator towards the subterranean world in which Lex was holding the mysterious Patient 29. She tried to reassure herself that so far everything had gone according to plan; since receiving the all clear from Jimmy to proceed a few minutes earlier they had encountered nothing unexpected. Cyborg had done his job with customary efficiency, the security systems down and the majority of the LuthorCorp security team nowhere to be seen. The diversion he had put together was working well, and AC had made short work of the two guards they had encountered at the entrance to the elevator. Still she felt anxious – there was something about going underground, of having so few possible lines of escape, that made her feel profoundly uncomfortable. What would they find in Lex's secret world? What horrors was he up to down here? She could not help but think of Lex's prisoner, the man they hoped to rescue – had he descended to his prison in this very elevator? How desperate he must have felt, to be in the hands of someone as brutal and merciless as Lex, and to be plunged into a nightmarish world of experiments and imprisonment. Her mood darkened, her sense of purpose strengthened – Lex had been allowed to get away with his crimes for far too long, and now she and the guys would finally bring him down, send him to the prison where he belonged.

She looked across at AC, who stood studying the display which methodically recorded their floor by floor descent. Dressed in the orange and green of his Aquaman costume, he appeared supremely confident, seemingly unconcerned about the dangers that could be a matter of just seconds away. On his back was strapped a small rucksack, the contents of which would give Lex more than enough to deal with as they made their escape – enough explosive to destroy Lex's laboratory of pain for good.

The motion of the elevator began to slow, a sure sign that they were approaching their destination. Chloe could feel her heart beating faster in her chest as she watched AC brace himself to deal with whatever they might find on the other side of the elevator doors; the Queen Industries satellite was unable to penetrate to this depth, and for all they knew they could find themselves stepping out into a corridor filled with LuthorCorp employees. The familiar sound of a tiny bell signalled their arrival, but as the doors slid back there was not the feared sight of armed guards, but instead the emptiness of a featureless corridor.

AC glanced across at Chloe, once again a smile of reassurance on his face.

"Okay, Watchtower – it's time. Any problems, just call me – meet back here in five."

With that AC bounded silently from the elevator, turning sharp left and disappearing along the corridor. Chloe felt another pang of uncertainty as she watched the young hero leave, wishing that their plan did not involve her having to separate from his reassuring presence. But the plan was set, and there was no changing it now; she was to find Patient 29, whilst AC set the explosives to destroy Lex's operation. Cautiously she too stepped into the narrow corridor, listening for a moment for any signs of life, any hint that their arrival might have been detected. There was none, and, satisfied that Cyborg's diversion had had its effect even down here, she turned right and began to make her way towards her destination.

It took her two minutes to reach it, two minutes of moving as quickly as she could along countless faceless corridors, each looking exactly the same as the others. As she slipped silently through the maze of passages she was grateful for the accuracy of Victor's schematic of the layout, and for her own diligence in committing it so carefully to memory; without such preparation it would have been all too easy to get lost in such a labyrinthine world. No sound was to be heard as she neared her target, the room on the plan which most obviously housed the prison in which the mysterious prisoner was being held; only her footsteps disturbed the eerie, airless stillness of Lex's subterranean lair.

At last she arrived, the thick steel door which confronted her confirmation that her suspicions about the room that lay beyond were right. This was a door designed for security - to secure something, someone, of immense value to the man who had constructed this hidden hell. Aware that her heart was beating still faster in her chest, she did not hesitate, but immediately placed the electronic device that Victor had given her to disable the lock next to the keypad that was located to the right of the door. In less than a second an indicator light flashed green, and there was the sound of a lock mechanism moving.

This was it – the moment of revelation. Beyond this door Chloe knew that she might find the key to bringing down Lex for good, the evidence she required to fulfil Oliver's mission. Her hands trembled as she took hold of the handle.....

As the door swung slowly open Chloe found herself confronted by a large, almost empty room, brightly illuminated by lights which hung high above. Her eyes were drawn immediately to the center of the room, and the large cage which stood there, its highly polished bars glinting in the light.

But it was not the cage which caused her heart to miss a beat, before it seemed to leap into her throat. Her eyes widened, the moisture leeching from her mouth as she tried to take in the sight that now held her transfixed.

For a moment she thought she was hallucinating. She stood, stupefied, seeing, but not daring to believe.

But this was no illusion.

There, hanging suspended in the center of the cage and unmistakable in the leathers of the Green Arrow, hung the lifeless form of the man whose life and supposed death had transformed her beyond all recognition.

"Oliver!" she gasped.

The moment so many of you have been waiting for - Chloe has found Ollie! So now they'll escape, Lex will be put behind bars and our favorite couple will live happily ever after.....just kidding! Lots of Chlollie to come, but you just know I'm going to put them through all sorts of angst, don't you? The next few chapters will be intense - in fact if everything goes according to plan chapter twenty eight will be the most intense chapter I've ever written....

Thanks so much for reading and reviewing. PLEASE do keep the reviews coming - even just a few words of encouragement have the power to make all the time I invest in writing seem worthwhile! Next week's update should be on time - in the meantime let's continue to celebrate that we're going to see both Chloe and Ollie in Season Nine!